Asa performs at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival!

ASA

Last week, Nigeria’s premier jazz and soul export Asa joined an exclusive league of musical greats, as she performed at the 44th edition of the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival. Since renowned Swiss Claude Nobs founded the event, it has become an annual gathering place for lovers of jazz from all over the world.

more after the cut..

‘Not All Artistes Are Manageable’ – AUDU MAIKORI, C.E.O, Chocolate City Music

AUDU MAIKORI

Most of the time we concentrate on artists, yes, because they are the visible ones who we get to hear and see. But behind every successful artist is a dedicated producer, manager, publicist and a lot of other background personnel whose special inputs brings us the final product of a hit song, a super video, a popular artist and so on.

I once chatted with the highly regarded boss of Chocolate City Music, Audu Maikoiri. A lawyer, he was the first Nigerian to win the British Council sponsored International Young Music Entrepreneur of the Year (IYMEY) in 2007 and has along the way helped nurture the careers of Jeremiah Gyang, Jesse Jags, Djinee, Asa and the current rave, M.I. We talked about most of the strategies involved in artist management and the various challenges facing the Nigerian music industry…

From what musical background do you coming?

The music started from my father. When we were small my father was and still is a major collector of music. We had access to different varieties of music. My dad was also a choir master and his loved for music spread to everyone of us his children. We had various musical instruments at home and even had a music teacher. As we grew older, we began experimenting with our own sounds and today I am a music producer. That is basically where it started.

Do you play any musical instruments?

Not anymore. I used to play the piano.

How did you then get into music production?

I am not a technical music producer. There is a big difference between a technical music producer and what I am doing. When I was at the University of Jos, I and a couple of my friends had a club and I suggested Chocolate City and they accepted the name. Our task in the club was to go from club to club and talk to people about music. It also spread to other universities but most of its branches were not from us. That was way back in 1997. In 2001, one of my directors started an NGO where he encouraged creative people to come in and share their ideas. People used to come to us with various problems, especially, as regards music contracts and careers and we helped. So, eventually, in 2003, I registered Chocolate City as a company. 1n 2005, we launched Chocolate City Music.

How do you decide on which artiste to sign or not?

We looked at the quality of artistes not numbers. We never compromise on quality when signing an artiste. When M.I came along with Crowd Mentality, we still worked on it to get it to where it is today. I may not be technically inclined, but I have an ear to good music and can make informed judgments on music. I have been with music all my life. A music producer has to have an ear for music and how to handle the business aspect of it.
The Nigerian market is peculiar and when you say an artiste sold let’s say 30,000 copies, it is not the same with the situation in other parts of the world. How are you able to manage your artistes in the Nigerian situation?

Like you said, the market is peculiar but music is music everywhere. We don’t put out music that we don’t think is of international quality. Once we are sure the quality and contents of that music are up to the standards we have set for ourselves, the next thing is that we develop a strategy for selling that music. We use all the available information outlets at our disposal to promote the music. I think it is really a question of defining a product, branding the product, and selling that product.

What’s your take on the moral content of Nigerian music?

We know that Nigerians generally are not vulgar and we producers take that into consideration. We don’t put out music that does not agree with our audience into the market. We also synergize with lots of corporate bodies, so we mind the content of the music we put out there.

What about the videos. You know sex sells…

Yes, sex sells but I think there is a way out. You cannot run away from sex but there is no reason you can’t do a video that will send a message, even sexual message, without being sexually explicit. You don’t necessarily need to do video showing naked women and stuff like that. That is not our culture. In this part of this world, it doesn’t even make sense to shoot explicit videos. If we do that, how can we show them? If the NBC bans our video, how do we recoup the money expended on it?

How are you managing with the copyrights issues of your artistes?

I am a lawyer and I have adequate knowledge of the copyright procedure. There is nothing new about piracy. It has always been there even overseas. What we are doing here is the explore as many distribution channels as possible – from the internet, i-Tunes, to normal distribution so that we can be able to get our works across to as many people as possible and limit the effects of piracy. The job still remains for the Nigerian Copyright Commission. They are the right people to tackle the problem. There’s not much we can do individually. The customs also come in.

People import printing machines from our ports and what they should do is to demand licenses and purposes of the imports. This will go a long way in checking piracy. We, the artistes and producers can only try to out smart them and then sensitize the public on the issue.

What do you think about the proliferation of record labels in the country?

I don’t really think we have a lot of standard record labels in Nigeria. A record label’s job is not about producing records. A label also has the job of promoting its artistes both at home and abroad. It doesn’t end at organizing album listening parties. The record label works hand in glove with the artistes’ manager to develop and promote the artiste. The proliferation of these labels in the county without proper checks and balances will only lead to a decline in standards. A label should be big enough to promote their artistes so that the artistes growth will not be stunted or limited.

You won the award as the International Young Music Entrepreneur of the Year in 2007, what was involved?

It is a worldwide project of the British Council. Every year the British Councils in over 110 countries selects ten countries to participate in this programme. The programme is aimed at developing music entrepreneurs, record labels, managers, etc, to sharpen their skills and help them learn what is going on elsewhere in the world and in other countries. In 207, I won it for Nigeria and got the opportunity to travel to the U.K to visit their music industries. At the end of this, the ten countries now compete among each other for the global prize and I won the global prize as well. The prize came with a cash amount of 7500 pounds which to be used for a collaboration project with the U.K. The project was executed last year. We discovered 30 Nigerian music industry people and sent them to the U.K to participate in a global trade event centered around music.

Are there other Nigerian music entrepreneurs that have won that prize?

This is the fourth year of the award. In 2006, Emem Ema of KUSH won. I won in 2007. Cobhams won it this year. But I am the only Nigerian that has won the global prize. The others won it at the country level. Nigeria has so many talents. More educated people are coming into the Nigerian music industry and that is helping the music industry. That we were able to win against countries like Poland, Malaysia and Holland shows that we are on the right track and that there are still more potentials waiting for their opportunities.

Are you still practicing law?

Yes. Law is in the blood because ever since I was four, I knew I was going to be a lawyer. Law gives me fulfillment. A kind of fulfillment which even music which I am very passionate about cannot give. In the label we are grooming people who would one day take over.

Let’s go a little bit private. Tell us about your wife?

Her name is Dr. Zeluwa. She is from Anambra State. We have been married for about a year now. She is a very wonderful person and has been my major backbone. She is in a large part involved in the management of Chocolate City. But is a medical doctor. She is very much in NGO work.

How did you meet her?

We were in Unijos together but we hadn’t met each other then. I met her in Abuja in 2004. I knew we were going to be together right from the first day she entered my car. She was the first female that didn’t complain about the volume of my music. I usually play very loud music in my car and she didn’t even notice the volume.

How did you get her into your car?

(Laughs) Like I told you, I am the president and founder of the Creative Writing Club in Abuja. So, we usually handout introductory forms to new members and welcome them afterwards. She had a headache during one of our meetings and I took her in my car to go buy her some pain reliever..

How do you know a good artist?

First of all, it is the music. Then the personality of the person comes in. The artiste has to be cool headed and responsible so as to be manageable. An artiste could be a load of trouble if he is not responsible and cannot be managed like that. You can be a good musician but you might not be a good artiste to manage. If an artiste takes drugs and indulges in all sorts of vices, he or she might not be a good artiste to manage.

Any advice for the artistes?

They should be hard working. They shouldn’t judge themselves by what others are doing. Most of the artistes that are hot now have been working on their contents for the past ten years. They should work on their contents so that when they finally come out, they will have something to show. Wherever you think you are now, work harder, there’s much work to do.

"THESE ARE MY LAST SET OF UPCOMING ACTS" - Kevin Lucciano, CEO Questionmark Records

KEVIN LUCCIANO

Questionmark Records is one of the major record labels in Nigeria. They launched Asa, Modenine, Silver Sadih, Streetmonks, Nnenna, The Cats and D’Accord’s careers before leaving the scene for a while. They are back with three new acts who are set to fully hit the music scene this year.

The label has also had a lot of issues with their artists and around the personal life of their boss, Kevin Luciano Gabriel. He reluctantly granted us audience at the Questionmark office and studio located on the second floor of Dream Plaza on Bishop Aboyade Cole Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Here he talked about most of the issues and his experiences with his artists. He also outlines his plans for his new artists and also states that the present ones are going to be his last set of upcoming artists.

Tell us about the new artists on the Questionmark label?

The new artists on Questionmark are Harrisong, a producer and singer who has done songs like “Yekelem” and done songs for Omotola, KC Presh, D’Supremes, a duo of ……….who have song like “Sepe Dey My System” and “Oya” on radio at the moment. Then there is Ego who has the song “Omolicha Nwa” which is also doing very well on radio. They are the three major artists on the Questionmark label at the moment.

What happened to your old artists?

That’s not a question you should be asking me. If you ask me that, then you should ask Kennis Music, Storm Records and the other labels that have lost artists at one time or the other what happened to their old artists. Having an artist on my label doesn’t mean that the artist would remain with me for the rest of their lives. Good business or bad business, artists would continue their journey somewhere else. Artists do not stay on one label forever. If they are not selling records, they either continue their journey elsewhere as artists or seek other careers. If they are selling records, they might decide to form their own label, as you are aware 96 percent of Nigerian artists own their “so called” record labels. Questionmark has been there and would continue to be there in many more years to come. It is platform and artists cannot stay under our label forever.

What particularly attracts you to artists and make you sign them?

What attracts me to artists is their talents first, their vocal quality and if they have production skills as well songwriting skills then they become bonus to us. Most of the artists that have been signed under Questionmark are talented in their various areas.

Are there particular types of music that you try to put out there?

No, I am a company. I follow the trend of the moment. If the trend is reggae today, I’ll sell reggae. My own personal taste of music might be different from what is en vogue but that is my person. The kind of music I want to sell is the kind of music people want to buy. They have all kinds of genres in Nigeria but the trend today is our own sound; our own local lingual in our sons. We are doing that but we are trying to keep it quality as much as we can because there are a lot of hits in Nigeria today that are good records but quality wise are nothing. And that is what I don’t indulge in. we try to make hits but we don’t sacrifice quality for it.

What is your own view of the goings on in the Nigeria music industry?

Nigerian music industry is doing well in terms of response. All over the world, Nigerian music is doing fantastic. Artists are being paid proper money for shows but record sales are still not doing as well as they should because there is no structure in place. Some people are trying to address that but we still depend on whatever the marketers tell us. We don’t know for sure how much we are making through the sales of our music but Nigerian music has put itself on the map internationally. Artists still don’t understand the business of music. Why would an artist just because of one hit single try to open a record label when even a Beyonce doesn’t have a record label? Artists need to learn the business of music.

Having been a music entrepreneur for this number of years, what is your advice to anybody going into the music business?

Music business is one of the most difficult businesses in Nigeria. Because a local man from Alaba is in the entertainment industry as well but what do we talk about intellectually or contract wise? There are also some talented artists who have not attended anything more than the primary school and you toss a contract to him and he also doesn’t understand it.

Anybody coming into this business should be prepared to face the situation where they would invest money in an artist and the artist would one day walk away from their contracts and they would be left with nothing. So, it is not an easy business. The legal section that deals with the issues of intellectual properties and record labels and artists is not effective. The legal system is new to some of these issues. Corporate bodies give shows to the same artist for five years. They don’t give any chance to other upcoming ones to climb their stage. But as we grow, we would get to understand these things more.

Questionmark has been around for right years now, would you say that you have achieved most of your objectives when you set out?

No, but the most important objective, we have achieved is that Questionmark is a household name in Nigeria and Africa. We are a big brand in terms of what we do musically. That is one of the most important objectives of any company when they set out, with the right products, we are back on top. We are working on products at the moment.

You made a name with the quality of your former artists, what should people expect from these new ones?

If people have been listening to radio, they would know that in terms of products, we are ready to make a statement. People should expect much from us this year and in the years to come because we are releasing the albums of our three artists this year.

Are there any other artists out there that you have your eye on and might be interested in signing?

I would sign any artist who sells records. I am not signing any new artist again. These are the last set of upcoming artists I would sign. To develop an upcoming artist is the most expensive venture you can ever enter. Most people don’t realize how much it could cost to develop an upcoming artist. If I sign an upcoming artist, it could take two to three years before they know him.

Nigerian artists don’t have that patience. Before three years, they start a fight disregarding that a lot of investment has been made on them, then they walk away. But if you sign a relatively established artist, he makes you more money fast and recoup your investment faster.

Is that not conflicting with your earlier statement that companies should give new artists a chance to perform on their stages?

That is different. You can put an artist on a show without even paying him or her. Just give them a chance to showcase themselves. It is different to allow an artist perform on your stage to pushing and developing an artist. You might have to shoot up to four videos for the artist before they even start knowing him or her and each video costs more than a million. To finish an album costs more than two to three million. And there is no guarantee that you will make a hit on the first album. So, when artists come out to claim that their record label owes them more, people should investigate it. If an artist become a star today, he did it by himself, if he fails, it’s the fault of the record label.

You are one of the music entrepreneurs whose label have had issues with artists, could you shed some light on some of them?

Most of the times they don’t get shows. I have also endured a lot of bad press because of them. For example, when J.T Tom West died, a tabloid carried a banner headline that read, “Kevin Luciano in Trouble over J.T Tom West’s Death” and then inside it was a different story. My father got a heart attack from that headline and I don’t even know anything about his death. There was also the story of me chasing Dejo Richards with a gun in this building and I was not even here at that time. About Asa, we are still in court over her issue and at the right time, the Nigerian public would get to know the real story behind our dealings with her.

But you released her album again in Nigeria after it had been released by her new record label?

Because the work was done with Questionmark! All the songs on the album except “Bibanke” were recorded in the Questionmark studio. So, why didn’t they sue us when we did if the work belonged to them?

In spite of all this, why do still persist in the music industry?

It is about the brand. We are the first to successfully take Nigerian music internationally but we never got any support from home. But I am a lion and nobody can kill my dream. I don’t die easily and I will continue going where I am going.

Coming back to our artists, we have over seven albums from seven different artists, which of them have blown? Most times it’s not the fault of the label but that of the artists. Since Asa left, she has never mentioned Questionmark in any of her interviews. She will only say that she used to be with one person before. She spent over three years with us and she never mentions our name anywhere, that’s not fair. I am not really the one to tell you Asa’s story because I am part of the story. Most people, especially the entertainment reporters in this country know the story but they will ever tell it as it is.

For Streetmonks, we had shot four videos for them, got them two nominations at the Channel O Awards, finished a fantastic album, spent almost N8 million on them and then they came and said they wanted a house. From where? They haven’t told sold any records yet at that time and they are making more requests. An artist can only make that request when they start making money for the label.

How can artists keep making requests when they haven’t sold any records yet or made any money for the label, because we couldn’t accede to their requests, they went back to the streets. They went to shows and refused to remit any money to the label. When artists claim that their labels are cheating them, it calls for investigation. Many record labels are fed up with antics of their artists and most of them have given up.

For D’Accord, they were given to by Nigerian Breweries to manage for some time and I fulfilled all my agreements with them. If they were very good, Questionmark would have continued with them. I could go on and on but these artist but let’s leave that for another day.